Wednesday, July 07, 2010

CLEARING UP A POSSIBLE JEEP MIS-CONCEPTION:))

SAYING OUR GOODBYES TO THE RANCH GANG EARLIER THIS YEAR & HEADING ON DOWN THE ROAD (All photos taken by Jeanie at the ranch)

I am short of photos tonight so am going to include some file pics just sent to us from the ranch folks. They show our morning departures from the ranch both this year & the year before.

SAYING OUR GOODBYES IN MARCH OF 2009 & HEADING FOR HOME

The prime focus for myself & countless thousands of other people today was to simply remain as cool as possible. The record breaking heat wave continues with each day seemingly hotter than the day before. By 9 a.m. this morning I had to retreat into the house after the humidity began turning me into a big sticky sweat ball.

CLEANING THE CORRAL.....DOESN'T LOOK LIKE KELLY'S GOT TOO MUCH 'STUFF' ON THAT SHOVEL!!

Sure glad we made the decision 3 summers ago to have central air installed. One of our better decisions for sure & much more comfortable for our doggy guys too.

Judging from some comments on last night's post I had better clear up a misconception I may have created lately with my 'Jeep tales.' First let me say, I love our Jeep:)) Yes, it's true, the Jeep is not as easy to get in or out of as our mini-van that's for sure. But, that is not the Jeep's fault just as it isn't my motorcycle's fault that I have difficulty getting on & off it as well. When I get off the bike I have to generally & embarrassingly reach back, grab my lower right pant leg & pull my horizontally straightened leg off the seat & let it drop to the road beside my other leg. The problem is simply mine........I have short legs!! Guess that explains why I have never been a runner. I'm built more like a quarter horse I guess. I can move very fast for a short distance & that's it. Although I did surprise myself last winter when I had to run to the aide of a downed ultra-kite pilot in the desert having big troubles with his chute & kite in high winds near Borrego Springs, California. But, here I go getting way off topic again.

THE LITTLE MOTORMOUSE IS SAD ABOUT LEAVING HER PALS

Let me just say that I am really enjoying getting to know the different Jeep characteristics & it takes me back to my very first car in 1963 which happened to be a 61 Volkswagen Beetle. There are many similarities between that little bug & this little Jeep & in future blogs I will talk about those similarities, plus more observations, events, & discoveries as as they occur. And yes, they have been occurring alright:))

FEEDING THE CHICKENS ONE LAST TIME

Had a mobility van run this afternoon & although I had the settings on the A/C maxed out it just barely kept us cool. I remember last summer we only had to run the A/C in the house 2 or maybe 3 days out of the whole summer but we are already way over that & it's only the first week in July. However, in only 5 weeks it will be mid August & that is when our weather pattern changes for the year & the very first early stirrings of Autumn will be felt. Night time temps will drop & days will be cooler.

LOADING UP THE MAXELL BOY IN 09

Thought I had better throw that little bit of early Autumn factual encouragement in for Donna over there at the CAVE DWELLINGS who at the present time is having quite a time with herself. She's 'down' with a nasty case of 'Hitch Itch' as she is yet again caught in another phase of........'yearning to travel.' Well, I sure know what that feels like alright!! Maybe y'all could drop over there & cheer her up a tad before husband Dennis sticks her in the recycling bin again.

I KNOW IT'S A SAD MORNING CHECKERS BUT IT'S TIME FOR US TO GO NOW:((

Say it isn't so!! Former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr is turning 70. If Ringo's 70 already, where the heck does that leave the rest of us. Ohhhhhhh, say it isn't so:((

MY PAL CORKY'S 3 MONTH OLD PUPPY PICTURE....HE'S A BIG BOY NOW:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( And here's a question for the Doctor.....Q: Doctor, I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life........is this true? A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... don't waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer. That's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap. "Now, that's my kinda Doctor:))"

Being owners of a Jeep we can certainly understand your post about getting in and out. It is different. My first car was also a VW Beetle...in fact we have always owned VWs. Maybe that is why we like the Jeep so much. I never put the connection together. Looking forward to your post on that.

Try to stay cool as you can in this heat. It is going to be nearly 100 by Friday with high humidity. YUK

Too bad you weren't in Borrego and you would have plenty to talk about!

The first time I rode in my '62 Corvair with the top down, after I had started riding a m/c, I wanted to lean into the corner when I made a turn. Do you want to do the same in your jeep? Maybe you won't feel it unless the top is off.

Nice pics of your 'sad' departures! The one of Corky is really nice! You never fooled me one bit with your laments about getting in and out of the Jeep, the more you complained, the more I knew you loved every thing about it!! My very first brand spanking new automobile was a 1967 Volkswagen Beetle - it was a terrific car!!

Just like Rick, Suzy and I knew you loved the Jeep! You simply have a fascinating and very enchanting way of telling tales. There's just enough exaggeration and fooferaw in the story to entertain the readers. Now get back in that Jeep with the top down and RIDE! Just be sure to leave your cowboy hat home, or you'll leave in in the dust 10-4!

AL'S CAMERA EQUIPMENT

A sometimes asked question readers have about my blog is what kind of a camera do I use. Well I have 8 of them and use them all. Five Nikon DSLR's, two quality Sony point and shoots plus one older Canon point and shoot.

'UPDATE':: July 2017 Thanks to a very generous blog reader I have been able to update my Nikon camera equipment and supplement my camera gear with a couple additional fine Sony cameras as well.I now have a 'donated' Nikon D7200 sporting my new Nikkor 18-300 3.5 zoom lens. Also have picked up a new Nikkor 1.8 primary 35mm lens. In addition I also now have a Sony RX100-3 camera as well as a Sony Exmore Cybershot. I have given my Canon Powershot point and shoot camera to a neighbor.

- In early 2017 I replaced my Nikon D-90 camera with a new D-3400 after the 'auto focus' feature on my aging D-90 quit working. The Nikon D-90 had been my work horse camera sporting a Nikkor 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 lens. I used this camera for most of my landscapes and I now have it set up for night photography where 'auto focus' is not necessary.

-My older faithful and favorite Nikon D-40 finally packed it in during the summer of 2015 and I replaced it with a new Nikon D-3100.

- Previous to my Nikon D-90, most of my photos were taken with my old faithful Nikon D-50 from 2006 to early 2011 whereupon the D-50 suffered a rather gruesome death when it fell off a table onto a cement porch in southeastern Arizona. The 70-300mm lens on the camera survived the fall but the D-50 did not. My Nikkor lenses are interchangable between the D-90 the D-3100 and the D-3400.